The rapid approval comes a day after Citigroup Inc. walked away from its own efforts to buy Charlotte, N.C.-based Wachovia.

Wells Fargo & Co. said Thursday that it would proceed with the purchase.

The Federal Trade Commission included the deal on a list of transactions released Friday that received an "early termination" of their antitrust reviews.

Early termination refers to the completion of a review by the FTC or Justice Department before the end of a 30-day period required under antitrust law.

Associated Press

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